For months after I found out I was pregnant something I wished for was a newer, more reliable car. Since I was interning [unpaid] I wasn't able to work. And obviously you can't afford a car payment if you don't have money coming in.
After I started back to work in August, though, this thought became a little more real. It was something that I researched and thought about quite often. Especially when I found out I need a whole new set of tires. And then when my car started shaking when I drove. And then again last week when it rained for three days and my car flooded [on the inside] for the umpteenth time.
So after working up a budget, thinking looooong & hard, and talking it over with my husband, Nanny, & my aunt [my biggest supporters], we headed to the car lots yesterday.
We got to the Toyota dealership at 9 am. Looked around & decided to test drive a 2011 Corolla. It was nice. The pedals were a little too sensitive for my liking. I felt like if I barely tapped the gas I would zoom forward going way faster than I intended. Same with the brakes. It didn't seem like I could just 'ease' on them. The slightest tap seemed to induce whip lash. It seemed a little smaller than my car, but it was in my price range where the Camry wasn't.
Onward to the Chevrolet dealership.
My current car was a chevy, and until recently [11 years old, over 100,000 miles on it, & 2 car accidents], I haven't had any serious problems with it.
I had my eyes on the Chevy Cruze, so I decided to test drive it. It drove like a dream. It just felt so natural because it literally drove just like my car, the only car I have driven on a regular basis for the past 7 years. So in we went to do paper work.
After 5 hours of haggling and signing our lives away, I am the proud new owner of this:
2012 Chevy Cruze
I can't even begin to tell you all how grateful I am that this has happened. Driving an hour away for work and having my baby in tow is going to be so much less stressful now that I have a car that I will be able to depend on.